Tree Shepherds
History The Tree Shepherds were formed in 2235, born from a schism in the nihilistic Purifiers. According to Purifier philosophy and ideology, gleaned from the'' Nayavishv'' Kavinaash'', an apocalyptic journal written by Tejesh Arinkindular, the'' Great War signaled the end of the old aeon and that a new, purer aeon would not be able to be birthed until everything else was destroyed. A young member of the Purifiers, Theresa Cunningham, challenged that nihilistic philosophy, claiming that the old world had already been burned away when the bombs fell during the Great War. Arinkindular’s prophecy had already taken place, and the Post-War world they were living in was the new aeon that was born in its destruction. It was the divine mission of men and women to nurture and coddle it, not further destroy and devastate it. Like the schism within the group that took place roughly a year before, a small group sympathetic to her beliefs rallied around her. Rather than attempting to reform the nihilistic cult, Cunningham and her followers fled, believing their lives to be in danger from the dogmatic leader of the group, Abigail Doyle. Cunningham and those loyal to her and her beliefs made contact with the Flames, the group that had separated themselves from the Purifiers in 2234, and the two groups joined up. It quickly became apparent that the ideological differences that gulfed the two sides were almost as large as those that separated Cunningham and her followers from the Purifiers. The Flames were just as interested in causing wholesale destruction as the Purifiers were, but their motives were different- instead of causing death and destruction in their wake believing it to be a divinely-ordained purpose, the Flames cause death and destruction in their wake for the money, sex, and power. Cunningham realized this almost immediately, but felt she and her could convince John “Flameskull” Lawrence to change his ways. After months and months of attempts, Cunningham eventually realized that the Flames were just as dogmatic as the Purifiers, except their gods were money, sex, and power, not nihilism. Later in that year, before Lawrence could tire of Cunningham and her more pacifistic followers, they left the Flames’ base camp at an abandoned rest area near the junction of Oregon Route 62 and U.S. Route 97 and headed northwest up Oregon Route 62, towards Crater Lake, the mountain in the distance. What Cunningham and her followers did not know was that that valley, Crater Lake, had been used by Enclave forces for FEV-related experiments, owing to the caldera lake’s isolation and self-containment. In the early 2230s, the Enclave Chemical Corps based in Kirkman Artillery Base began experimenting with weaponizing aerosols with glycoprotein triggers, allowing airborne viruses to target specified victims. At least twice in the years before Cunningham and her followers arrived, vertibirds took off from the artillery base and sprayed the isolated valley with chemical agents, triggering the wholesale elimination of all living things in the valley except plant life and vegetation. Cunningham and her followers arrived at the caldera lake at the end of the year 2234. They made the ascent up the mountainside, climbing roughly 6,500 feet (1.2 miles) above sea level. The took refuge in a collection of lodges on the southwest rim that had once been home to the United States National Park Service. There, roughly 900 feet above sea level, they had an excellent view of the entire valley below them. Most striking was the massive amount of vegetation in the basin and the gigantic tree growing in the lake. During Pre-War times, the tree was known as the Old Man of the Lake, a 30-feet tree stump bobbing in the cold waters of Crater Lake since at least 1896, when geologists and explorers first began documenting the valley. Due to the ambient radiation of the Post-War world and possibly the experiments conducted by the Enclave earlier in the decade, the Old Man of the Lake mutated, taking root once more and growing roughly 500 feet tall and 50 feet in diameter. Cunningham and her followers believed the existence of the tree was a divine sign, given their beliefs. Along with a handful of her closest followers, she descended to the bottom of the mountainside to take in the scene. At the base of the tree, Cunningham had a divine revelation. When touching golden sap oozing from the tree, she had a vision of a completely reforested, healthy world, as if the Great War had never happened. Believing the tree to be some kind of conduit to that idyllic world, she declared the valley to be holy ground. Coming into contact with the tree- soon known affectionately as the Oakfather- had a secondary impact on Cunningham as well. After some time, she began noticing that plants she planted and flora she tended began growing faster, hardier, and healthier than flora grown and tended by other members of her group. After experimenting, she discovered that the sap oozing from the Oakfather had some kind of special properties than aided plant-life. Cunningham began harvesting the sap, and the Tree Shepherds have used to it help reforest southern Oregon. Beliefs The Purifiers draw their beliefs from the'' Nayavishv Kavinaash'', a treatise that a Pre-War survivor of the Great War named Tejesh Arinkindular wrote immediately after the bombs fell. Translated from Hindi as “''A New World of'' Destruction''”, the document claimed that existence is cyclical in nature,'' that the Great War represented the end of the last aeon of existence, and that the futile rebuilding efforts taking place in the Post-War world were preventing the new aeon from being born. Theresa Cunningham, though not highly educated, found fault in the philosophy, believing that the Post-War world was the new aeon, and that working to damage and destroy it was working against the idea of a newer, better world being born from the ashes of the old, corrupt one. Her and her followers believe instead that the Post-War world needs to be nurtured and coddled, like a young child. They strive to help nature flourish and allow the natural order of things to return to the world. The group worships a massive hemlock growing in the deep waters of Crater Lake that they call the Oakfather. According to their belief system, the Oakfather is the harbinger of the new aeon, and the world will be revitalized because of it. It oozes a sap, which the Tree Shepherds call ‘mana’, that causes plants to grow extremely quickly, and completely healthy. Using mana, the group has gone about reforesting southern Cascadia. Culture & Practices Wonton destruction is antithetical to their worldview, and as such, the Tree Shepherds are pacifists. This is not to say that they will not defend themselves if threatened, but they generally utilize violence as a last option, when no other option seems possible. They tend to utilize weaponry that minimizes any kind of risk to nature, ruling out devices such as flamers, plasma, and laser weaponry. The Tree Shepherds are known for ministering in the small rural communities in southern and central Oregon, offering those that are willing to listen fresh food, clean water, and agricultural tips so that they will be able to better serve themselves, and nature. While not affiliated with the Followers of Apocalypse, the two sides share many of the same values, and certainly can appreciate the work of the other. Relationships The Tree Shepherds have been careful to maintain as strict a policy of neutrality as possible in the many conflicts have that taken place in southern Cascadia in the last few decades. They consider themselves stewards of nature, and as such, side with nature when a side must be picked. They generally had good relations with tribal groups in central and southern Oregon that were not overtly hostile towards outsiders, as most tribal groups lived in harmony with nature, rather than in conflict with it. Until they were destroyed, the Tree Shepherds lived in fear of the Purifiers, the group they were born from. The nihilistic cult considered the original schism that created the Tree Shepherds an unforgivable crime, and attacked them on sight. There was no reasoning with the Red Men, as they were known, and as such, the Tree Shepherds felt it easier to avoid conflict rather than be forced to defend themselves from a divinely inspired enemy. The Flames, when they operated in southern Oregon, often posed danger to the Tree Shepherds, but unlike the Purifiers, they could be reasoned with to a degree, as they coveted worldly possessions more than anything. Opinions on the New California Republic are mixed, and the group has no official stance regarding the growing nation. On one hand, the NCR brought war with them, and many of various conflicts that have taken place in Cascadia have had a negative impact on the local flora and fauna. The NCR also sees the environment as a means to an end to be exploited without regard to their impact on it. On the other hand, the NCR is interested in sustaining itself, and many of their policies have been less harmful on the local ecology than the policies of smaller locals. Category:Groups Category:Cults Category:Cascadia